Nuts & seeds

Better buys

• Nuts without added salt or savoury coatings.
• Raw nuts (to oven bake at home).

Good to know

• Nuts can be oven baked without added fat or oil.
• Buy nuts in the shell as having to crack them open slows down the amount you eat.
• Chestnuts are low in fat (2-7%).
• When using peanut butter as a spread you don’t need to use margarine as well.

Watch points

• Most nuts contain monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats and can be used as part of a heart healthy diet.
• Nuts and seeds are high in fat and energy (calories) – eat small amounts, especially if you need to watch your weight.
• Coconut, coconut milk and coconut cream are high in saturated fat – use only small amounts or choose reduced fat coconut milk. Coconut essence added to reduced fat milk makes an acceptable alternative.